The Trump administration will reportedly set the refugee cap at 45,000 — the lowest in decades

President
Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Malaysian Prime
Minister Najib Razak in the Cabinet Room of the White House,
Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2017, in Washington.Associated Press/Alex Brandon

President Donald Trump intends to reduce the amount of refugees
resettled in the United States in the next fiscal year to 45,000,
The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people
familiar with the discussions.

That cap would be the lowest ceiling on refugee
admissions since the 1980 creation of the Refugee Act, which
gave the president the power to determine refugee admission
levels.

The 45,000 figure will not be formally settled until Wednesday,
after the Trump administration consults with Congress, the
Journal reported.

Senior policy adviser Stephen Miller, one of the staunchest
immigration hardliners remaining in the White House, had
reportedly pushed for a cap as low as 15,000, according to the
Times. Homeland Security officials, meanwhile, recommended at a
recent meeting that the limit be lowered to 40,000.

Axios reported on Monday that Secretary of State Rex
Tillerson had signed off on a memo recommending that admissions
be capped at 45,000.

Refugee resettlement organizations in the US expressed dismay at
the news on Tuesday. They had been pushing the Trump
administration to set next year's refugee cap at at least 75,000,
and said a further reduction in admission levels would drain
their resources and force the shuttering of many resettlement
programs.

"Reports of a ceiling as low as 45,000 are deeply troubling at a
time of global crisis," Hans Van de Weerd of the International
Rescue Committee said in a statement to Business Insider.

"The decision to arbitrarily slash refugees admitted would
represent a sad day for America, and a bad day for the world's
refugees. Setting a record-low cap on refugee resettlement, the
White House is showing a stunning cruelty toward those fleeing
our common enemies — enemies who intend to paint the US as
indifferent to refugees' suffering."